


Yurei

by syusuke



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Gen, Inspired By Tumblr, Inspired by Fanart, Japanese Folklore, Stream of Consciousness, in the halloween spirit, modernKakashi, open end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-14
Updated: 2019-11-14
Packaged: 2021-02-01 07:10:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21432127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/syusuke/pseuds/syusuke
Summary: I saw lovely fanart for a halloween themed gift exchange and it showed Tobirama as a sort of ghostly apparition. I could not resist writing a little something for it.Modern AU - Kakashi gets lost in the forest and as the hours tick by he gets more and more frustrated. Until 3 am, the devil's hour, when a strange blue light appears a few meters ahead. He does not understand what he finds when he finally catches up with the light.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi & Senju Tobirama
Comments: 15
Kudos: 29





	Yurei

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Halloween Gift Exchange](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/535180) by KiroSveta. 

> KiroSveta gave me permission to link to her art :-)  
Please check it out on her tumblr! Obviously, I really like it!

This was stupid.

Although he could only blame himself, what kind of idiot would go wander around in an unknown forest? It had been hours since he lost the path in the dark. Even if he found his way out, by now there were no more trains leaving the small town. He was stuck here.

Kakashi sighed. Maybe this was a sign. Maybe it had been a stupid idea to even consider this job. Sure, the job sounded good. He could work from home and he could decide the hours himself, as long as he got everything done by the deadline. It sounded like the perfect opportunity for an insomniac. But accepting the job would mean he had to move into town, even though he would mostly be able to work from home, he still had to attend the weekly meetings.

The forest had intrigued him. It had looked reasonably peaceful and if nothing else he had longed for some solitude. A little time to himself, to clear his head and weigh the pros and cons. It was just his luck that thick clouds had blocked the sun and caused him to lose the way.

There were few sounds. An occasional hoot, crickets. Mostly rustling leaves. More than once he had turned around to look for pursuers, but there was nothing to see. He would change course if he had any idea in which direction the town was. As it was, just sticking to his original direction was his best option. At least the walking would keep him warm. The sun had set by now, leaving him with the pale moonlight.

A flicker caught Kakashi’s attention. A few meters in front of him was a small blue ball of light.

He blinked.

It did not disappear.

Determined not to change the direction Kakashi approached the light, curious as to its source. But he couldn’t reach it! Every time he looked up from his feet again, the light had moved further ahead. It was frustrating and he was starting to think his mind played tricks on him. They had made him write a report for the interview and the images of hitodama and kitsunebi might be a little too fresh in his memory. These things didn’t exist. Clearly, he was just seeing things.

The next time he looked up, the light hovered next to wooden steps. Kakashi picked up his pace. If nothing else, he had a clear goal now.

With his first step onto the structure the light disappeared. Kakashi could hardly see, so he rummaged through his bag for his phone. He had saved it for emergencies so far. It was an old phone and he did not dare to use any more battery than absolutely necessary. He unlocked it to check for a connection. Of course, there was none. It did show him that it was 3am though and that he had several missed calls from earlier in the day.

In the bright white light he recognized the structure in front of him as a small altar, probably belonging to an old temple. Someone had left two candles and matches. He put his phone back and lit the candles instead. It felt oddly wrong to use technology in a sacred place. Not that he was especially spiritual or even believed in an afterlife. It just felt wrong and Kakashi trusted his instincts.

He watched the warm light, feeling comforted by their soft flickering. He would have loved a proper fire. The flames always seemed to hypnotize him in a way. From experience he knew he did his best thinking when he allowed his mind to wander.

No… That would be ridicoulus. He sighed, he didn’t even believe in spirits. But maybe it would help? It couldn’t hurt to try.

Well, he was gonna do it!

He still remembered the proper stance. He clapped his hands together, bowed his head and closed his eyes. In his mind he went through the different prayers grandma taught him and recited one after another.

He didn’t want to leave this place and what else was there to do?

His eyes snapped open at once when he thought he heard movement. The blue light hovered in front of him again, this time it didn’t move away. The ball slowly changed shape, until he could recognize a man dressed in formal clothes from the Edo era.

He could basically hear Obito teasing him for his random knowledge. Kakashi knew many things, seemingly random and yes, much to the annoyance of his friends. But that was just part of being a translator, lots of random vocabulary and research.

Wait, that was not the point.

How? Why? Why could he see the man at all? And why was he smiling at him? An outstretched hand? An offer?

This had to be a dream.

“Would you stay with me till sunrise?”

Kakashi couldn’t find it in him to decline and took the hand. He was surprised to be pulled up and into the small temple. Since when could ghosts touch people? What was this?

“Who are you? What do you want with me?”

The man smiled at him and pointed him to a small stack of pillows. A fire was burning inside and tea was brewing. Kakashi accepted a cup of tea with a polite bow, before he settled into the pillows.

“I’m the guardian of this temple. I guide those who are lost.”

The man gave him another warm smile and Kakashi no longer cared about the why and the how. This was nice. Definitely better than wandering through the forest in the cold.

**Author's Note:**

> Yurei actually means ghost, because of Tobirama's appearance.
> 
> Just dipping my toes a bit in japanese folklore. I love mythology and the will o wisp came to mind when I saw the artwork. Obviously, there is a sort of equivalent in japanese folklore, the kitsunebi or the hitodama.
> 
> The kitsune-bi are fox fires and usually appear in multiples, lighting a path. They mostly appear as red or orange flame, similar to the glow of paper lanterns. There are a few legends where the flame appeared blue. They are considered mischievious spirits that lead lost wanderers astray. --> very close to a will'o'wisp.
> 
> Hito-dama means human soul. It's very much a lost soul himself and to me it resembles a ghost.I found this description on wikipedia and really liked it:  
When you are alone and meet the complete blueness of a hitodama, you would naturally think of it as the sorrow on a rainy night.


End file.
